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Whose Arm Rest Is It Anyway? Here’s Why the Middle Seat Passenger Gets Both

by Gary Leff on October 5, 2018

behind man in airplane seat

Oct 05 2018

Airlines charge extra for the ‘better’ coach seats. It would be nice if they gave you something extra when you’re stuck in one of the seats that’s worse than average — a free cocktail, free inflight internet, or a discount on your next trip. At a minimum airlines could make the unwritten rule that the coach passenger gets priority for two arm rests explicit.

This isn’t a written rule, and it isn’t enforceable. We need to be courteous to fellow passengers, and this is the principle that gets us there.

Swiss Erases Israel From Its Moving Map In Order to “Remain Neutral”

by Gary Leff on October 5, 2018

moving airplane 3d map

Oct 05 2018

Swiss is under fire after its flight from Zurich to Tel Aviv on Thursday, September 27 displayed the name of a Palestinian Arab village which was abandoned in 1948 prior to the Arab-Israeli war in place of Tel Aviv on the aircraft’s ‘moving map’ display.

The destination Tel Aviv is listed, but where it would go on the map has been replaced by the name of a town that was abandoned 70 years ago.

Barclays Arrival Premier Being Closed to New Customers

by Gary Leff on October 5, 2018

credit card wallet

Oct 05 2018

The Barclays Arrival Premier World Elite Mastercard just launched in April. It put Barclays into the transferable miles game alongside American Express, Chase, and Citibank.

The play with this card was the unique earning structure — a bonus for spending on the card each year instead of an initial signup bonus.

Man Refused Boarding For Wearing Shorts

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

airport terminal

Oct 04 2018

United Airlines had some confusion last year over whether or not passengers in yoga pants were allowed to fly. They are.

But did you know there’s an airline where men aren’t allowed to travel in shorts?

American Express Launches New Gold Card With Great 4x Bonus Categories

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

amex rose gold card

Oct 04 2018

American Express just refreshed their Premier Rewards Gold Card and renamed it “American Express Gold Card.”

Most importantly the card raises the bar for points-earning at US restaurants and US grocery stores, while retaining strong points-earning on airline spend. And they’ve added a new monthly credit for dining. Today’s changes to the product – for me – make it the most rewarding card for ongoing spend.

Theft in Mid-Air. Here’s How Passenger Valuables Were Recovered

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

south african airways

Oct 04 2018

In August I wrote about a ring of thieves stealing from passenger bags in the overhead bin.

There are occasional stories of passengers stealing from others’ carry on bags, usually this happens during long international flights when the cabin is dark and many passengers are asleep.

Now Marriott Hotel Workers in San Francisco Are On Strike, Too

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

hotel

Oct 04 2018

Yesterday I wrote about Marriott hotel employees in Boston walking out.

Now 2300 employees have walked out at several San Francisco properties.

Measles Exposure at Newark Airport and Flight Attendant Wins Miss Scotland

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

Linzi McLelland

Oct 04 2018

A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.

Hyatt Introduces Points-Earning, Redemption, and Elite Benefits at Exhale Spas

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

spa therapies promo

Oct 04 2018

Hyatt purchased Miraval not because they wanted a standalone wellness resort, but because they want to extend the brand and create an association with wellness across their hotels. They purchased Exhale spas as part of the same strategy.

To date they’ve offered discounts and bonus points, getting their feet wet, and today they’ve rolled out Exhale Spa benefits as a feature of the World of Hyatt program.

Marriott Wants to Make Good, Get You Registered for Fall Promotion

by Gary Leff on October 4, 2018

outside marriott hotel

Oct 04 2018

Last month Marriott introduced its first big promotion since launching their new program.

However not everyone was able to register for it. Marriott even said this was intentional. Now they’re saying it wasn’t, and they want to help folks get registered that weren’t able to earlier.

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.

Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »